Lemonade
by JPsmiles
Summary: A fight between B.A. and Face ends up bringing them closer in the end.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Lemonade

Rating: PG

Summary: A fight between B.A. and Face ends up bringing them closer in the end.

"What you mean you can't make it? I was countin' on you...you told me weeks ago that you'd help me take the community center kids to the zoo."

"I know...and I will. But, you didn't tell me it was this Saturday. I can't make it."

"Why not, man?" B.A. demanded.

"I have other plans already." 'Just don't ask me what they are,' Face prayed silently.

"I knew it!" B.A. exclaimed pounding his fist into his other hand.

B.A.'s response took Face by surprise. "You knew what?"

"Choosin' some lady over them kids ain't right!"

"For your information, I don't have a date."

"Then what's the problem?"

Face sighed, knowing his answer wouldn't go over well. "It's personal."

B.A. made a fist and held it up in front of his teammate. "If you don't start explaining, my fist and your face are gonna get personal."

"If you must know, I have plans with Father Maghill," he answered, already revealing more than he had wanted to.

"So, reschedule...he'll understand."

"Look B.A., I'm sorry...really, I am. But, I just can't make it that day." Face turned and started to leave. He didn't want to tell B.A. the real reason for his visit with the priest who just about raised him.

"We ain't done yet, man. Don't you walk away from me," B.A. said grabbing Face by the arm and spinning him around.

Face pulled his arm away and rubbed the spot where B.A.'s massive hands had squeezed. "C'mon B.A., let's drop it. I'll help out next time for sure."

B.A. shook his head disapprovingly. "You really are somethin'. But, this is low...even for you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"We all know that you put yourself first, but this time you gone too far."

Face felt his anger rising, but he kept his voice calm. "That's not fair, and you know it."

B.A. did know it; Face had always been a good friend and spent a great deal of time helping out at the center. But at the moment all he could see was red and the words flew out of his mouth before he had a chance to hold them back. "You ain't no good, Faceman. All you do is lie and steal...you no better than a common thief."

Face's mouth hung open for a brief moment in shock. Quickly regaining his composure, he said acerbically, "It's nice to know what you really think of me...or should I say how little you think of me." Again, Face started walking away not wanting to show B.A. how much his words had really hurt.

"I thought I told you not to walk away from me," B.A. growled moving in front of the smaller man and blocking his exit.

"Get out of my way, B.A."

B.A. took an imposing step closer. "Why don't you make me?"

Face hung his head; how had things escalated to this point? Looking up, he briefly met B.A.'s eyes before stepping to the side and trying to get by.

B.A. countered Face's movement. Raising his arms he put his hands on Face's chest and pushed lightly. A light push from B.A., however, was enough to send him reeling. Unable to regain his footing, he stumbled backwards. He put his arms out behind him to break his fall, but landed awkwardly on the right one while smacking the back of his head on the edge of the coffee table. Face lay there, stunned, spots clouding his vision. B.A. stood over him breathing hard, not from effort, but from emotion.

(TBC…part 1 of 3)


	2. Chapter 2

Title: Lemonade

Rating: PG

Summary: A fight between B.A. and Face ends up bringing them closer in the end.

"25 years," Face mumbled, dizzy and disoriented.

"What?" B.A. asked; it was his turn to be surprised.

"Twenty-five years on Saturday," he slurred, still really unaware of what he was saying. Face slowly pushed himself up to a sitting position, gasping as a sharp pain shot through his wrist. He quickly cradled it close to his body.

"What's 25 years on Saturday?"

Face didn't answer at first; he was too busy trying to breathe through the pain and stopping himself from passing out. Realizing that he had said too much to stop now, he answered quietly, "The anniversary of the day I wandered into the orphanage. Father Maghill calls it my birthday," he paused then mumbled, "since I don't know when the real one is."

"Damn," B.A. cursed under his breath.

"December 7, 1958. The day I officially became an orphan. The father always tried to make me feel good about it...guess he still is."

"Damn," B.A. cursed again.

"You said that already, B.A." Face chuckled slightly, than winced at the pain in his head. The spots were back in front of his eyes and he blinked them rapidly trying to focus.

B.A. knelt down next to his friend; anger replaced by apathy for what he had done. "You okay, man?"

"Don't feel so good...dizzy." He started falling backwards, but B.A. reached out, caught him and lowered him down to the ground.

"Damn."

"He's been out a long time," Face heard Murdock say.

"Maggie said that he has a pretty severe concussion," Hannibal added. "He might not even remember what happened at first...or even who we are."

'Not remember who they were...not likely.' Face tried to laugh, but only succeeded in groaning.

"I think he's coming around," Hannibal said taking hold of Face's hand.

Face opened his eyes slowly to see Murdock's brown eyes staring intently back at him. "Hey Faceguy, welcome back. You remember us?"

"You guys aren't exactly easy to forget," he rasped; his throat felt so dry.

Hannibal poured Face a cup of water and held the straw to his lips so he could drink. "Drink slow...you don't want to get sick."

"Thanks," Face said. His eyes wandered around the unfamiliar room. "Where are we?"

"Maggie's guest room. You took quite a knock to your head and have a broken wrist. Don't worry...she said it should heal up just fine..."

"But, it looks like you won't be picking locks anytime soon," Murdock joked.

Face looked confused. "So what happened? And where's B.A...is he okay?"

Hannibal frowned. "You don't remember?"

Face started to shake his head, but stopped abruptly at the pain in his skull. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply in through his nose and out his mouth.

"You okay?" Murdock asked anxiously.

"Yeah." He opened his eyes again, but this time they were clearly clouded by discomfort.

"How are you feeling?" Hannibal questioned. "And don't say "fine", I want the truth."

"Head hurts pretty bad and my wrist aches," Face replied taking inventory. "But, I can handle it. Is B.A. okay?"

Hannibal and Murdock looked at each other, unsure if they should tell him or not.

Face catching the silent exchange, worriedly asked, "What? What's wrong?"

Hannibal sighed; he had to tell him something, might as well be the truth. "Face, you and B.A. got in a little argument the other day. Apparently, he pushed you and that's how you got hurt."

"The big guy feels just awful about it," Murdock quickly added.

"I just can't remember," Face said wearily. "I'm sure it was an accident." The pain was starting to show on his face.

"Don't force yourself to remember...just try to relax," Hannibal said gently. "I'm going to go get Maggie and see if we can give you anything for the pain."

"Okay," Face agreed, his body starting to tremble.

Face willingly accepting pain medication was never a good sign. Hannibal and Murdock shared another glance, this one unnoticed by Face. While they were used to caring for an injured team member, the cause of the injury was not typically one of their own.

(TBC…one part to go.)


	3. Chapter 3

Title: Lemonade

Rating: PG

Summary: A fight between B.A. and Face ends up bringing them closer in the end.

Face watched Father Maghill walk out of the room saddened that he couldn't see the older man out.

It had been three days since he woke up in Maggie's guest room, and he still couldn't get up without experiencing extreme dizziness. And while Maggie had assured him that it was completely normal after experiencing a head injury, it was also completely frustrating. Even simple tasks such as using the bathroom had become a group effort. And if that wasn't humiliating enough, with his injured wrist he found himself needing help dressing and feeding himself at times.

Face looked out the window to see the Father driving off down the road. It was Saturday, and since Face couldn't travel to the orphanage as planned, the priest had come to him. They spent a nice enough afternoon talking and reminiscing, but Face couldn't shake the anxious feeling in the pit of his stomach. He didn't know what was bothering him more: that it was his "anniversary" or that he hadn't seen B.A. since their little spat. All he did know was that he was going insane laying there with his thoughts; sometimes he swore he was his own worst enemy.

Face lay there trying to ignore his need to use the restroom. Murdock had returned to the VA the day prior and Hannibal had accompanied Maggie to the grocery store, leaving Face alone in the house. He considered waiting for the duo to return, but figured it could be a couple of hours before they made it back.

"C'mon Peck," he said out loud, "you're a big boy...you should be able to pee by yourself."

Face slowly made his way down the hall holding onto the wall with his good arm. He felt as if he were walking on one of those inflatable moon walk rides.

'It's like being drunk without the fun of getting that way,' he thought trying to ignore the increasing nausea and focusing on taking one step at a time.

By the time he made it to the bathroom and concluded his business, he knew he was in bad shape. His head ached and his stomach churned.

'And this would be the hangover part.' He grabbed at the sink one-armed as his vision stared to blur and his legs started to buckle. Face lowered himself to the tile floor, closed his eyes and let his head rest against the cool tile floor.

It wasn't long before he heard footsteps coming down the hall. He opened his eyes to see B.A. standing in the doorframe.

"What you doin' down there man?" he asked.

"Oh, I thought a hard tile floor would be more comfortable than my soft bed," Face joked with a wan smile.

B.A. didn't smile back, missing the attempt at humor. "You need some help?"

"Yeah, I'm not too steady on my feet these days."

B.A. helped him up and frowned as he noticed the color drain from his friend's face once he was in a vertical position. "You alright, man?"

"Little woozy is all," Face answered softly, leaning heavily against the bigger man.

B.A. took most of Face's weight as they inched back toward the bedroom. Neither man spoke. Face was too busy trying to stay conscious while B.A. was working out in his head what he was going to say. 'You was man enough to cause this mess,' he scolded himself, 'now you better be man enough to make it right.'

Once back in bed Face kept his gaze trained on the ceiling. There was an elephant in the room, and though he was a big man, that elephant was not B.A. Knowing that B.A. wasn't one for words, he decided to break the ice. "Will you do me a favor?"

B.A. eagerly replied, "name it."

Face grinned and said, "Next time you feel like pushing me, try blowing on me instead. I'll still fall over, but maybe I won't hit the ground so hard."

B.A. nodded and returned the grin; the ice had been melted. "Listen, Faceman," he started, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. "I had no right to put my hands on you."

Face opened his mouth to object, but B.A. held his palm up and said, "let me get this out before I lose my nerve. As I was saying, I had no right to put my hands on you. I also said some things I didn't mean to say. I never meant for you to get hurt and I'll understand it if you don't want nothing to do with me no more." B.A. looked down at his hands and started fidgeting nervously with his rings.

"What are you talking about, fool?" Face asked, mimicking the words B.A. so often used himself. "I know you didn't mean to hurt me. We're friends, B.A., nothing is going to change that. Besides, we've gotten into plenty of fights before; I'm just not brave enough to put my hands on you."

"It ain't got nothin' to do with bravery. It's stupid and it won't happen again."

"Good," Face said pointing to his head, "because if my bell gets rung like that again, I might just have to tell Murdock that he's getting a new roommate." He paused, suddenly looking somber. "I owe you an apology, too. If I had just told you the truth we could have avoided this whole thing. It's just not something I like talking about."

B.A. nodded his understanding. "You doin' okay with all that stuff…you know…being that today is Saturday."

"I'm fine," he replied automatically; it was his standard response to most questions about his well being. Seeing B.A.'s raised eyebrows, he modified his response. "I'm just really confused about how I'm supposed to feel."

"Mama always said that you can't control your feelings…but sometimes it's best not to let them control you."

"Your mama is a wise woman B.A." Face sighed, "But how is it possible for a day to be the best and worst all at the same time? On one hand it was wonderful because I met Father Maghill and finally had a steady roof over my head. But, on the other hand, it was awful because it was the day I realized my mother was never coming back for me." Face started to shake slightly as he thought back to the day. "I don't remember much…I was only five…but I still remember how scared I was. I can still feel it."

"It's kind of like Nam. I was never so scared in my life. It was the worst thing I had ever went through." He shrugged his shoulders and added, "But it was also good because that's how I met you, Hannibal…and even the fool."

"You know, I never thought of it that way before. Maybe, I just have to stop thinking about the bad stuff, and start focusing on the good.

"Mama also said that when life gives you lemons, make lemonade." B.A. smiled a rare wide smile that betrayed his nickname.

"Lemonade, huh?" Face pondered rubbing at the stubble on his chin.

"Yup."

"Being that the New Year is less than a month away, I think I'm going to make it my resolution to 'make lemonade'."

"I like it. Just don't go tellin' Murdock," B.A. smirked.

"Why not?"

"Knowin' crazy man he'll go out and buy all the lemons he can find. He'll start callin' himself Lemon-Man and start namin' each of them. And that'll make me break my resolution."

"Your resolution?"

"Yeah, to keep my hands off my friends." B.A. giggled covering his mouth with his hand.

"I have a feeling it's going to be a very long year," Face groaned before joining B.A. in laughter.

The End


End file.
